Preston Ari Swirnoff

Maariv is a collection of electroacoustic solo works composed and produced by San Diego-based musician, Preston Swirnoff. This collection was recorded at his studio, The Habitat, in 2004-2005. Swirnoff also collaborates with Ilya Monosov in primal rock unit The Shining Path and as Monosov Swirnoff, as well as producing heavy analog dub music as Habitat Sound System. Taking 20th century minimalism, ritual drone music, and early electronic and tape experiments as launching points, Swirnoff uses a variety of instruments (piano, tone generators, organs, guitar, tape machines) to create absorbing sound worlds that thrive on repetition, melody, noise, and a sense of the otherworldly. Swirnoff has cited Gyorgy Ligeti, La Monte Young, the SF Tape Music Center of the '60s, the haunting solo work of Angus MacLise, and old Jewish liturgical melodies as inspirations that inform the four pieces on Maariv. Each piece, though based on a simple premise and instrument set-up, weaves a complex aural tapestry rich in both texture and emotion.